Stories to fuel your mind
ONLINE ADDICTION
Story by LAURA CACERES
The stats are undeniable: we are living in the social media era. Consider this: 2 billion worldwide social network users, 500 million tweets sent every day, 70 million images uploaded daily on Instagram, 300 hours of video uploaded per minute on YouTube1 .
Since it first began, social media has enabled us to connect and communicate continuously, tapping into our social nature and our need to share information with others. We share to impress, entertain and be useful, and to express who we are — or who we want to be. Social networks have amplified this aspect of human nature. They have broken the barriers of distance and time, of presence and visibility. They expand and fulfill the most deeply human need of communicating, while providing rewards in the form of attention from others for relatively minimal effort. But have they gone too far?
Sponsored Ads
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SOCIAL ADDICTION
Social media products are habit-forming and addictive, and it’s not accidental that they keep us coming back for more. Our desire for likes, retweets, and emoticon reactions grow with every positive reinforcement. The business model is to engage users and then sell that attention to advertisers. And psychology is an integral part of this process. UX designers carefully study how people interact with products and how their decisions can be influenced or manipulated. For social networks to work — to get the next round of funding or be considered marketable — users must spend increasing amounts of time on them. So UX designers are always looking for new ways of getting people to stay hooked.
Sponsored Ads
“26 PERCENT OF THE GLOBAL POPULATION IS ON SOCIAL MEDIA”
THE DOWNSIDES OF CONSTANT CONNECTIVITY
But spending too much time on social media can make people feel unhappy and isolated. And worse? The portrayal of “perfect” lifestyles and material goods can also fill users with jealousy and despair. It’s a vicious circle: Social media use provides rewards that encourage increased use. This continuous use eventually leads to problems: ignoring real life relationships, work or school responsibilities, and declining physical health. This damaging behaviour can cause people to engage in social networking even more to relieve their pain. Consequently, when social network users repeat this pattern, the level of psychological dependency increases. Experts recommend we all take a “digital detox” to break harmful dependency patterns and improve our well-being. This is easiest when done gradually, and it’s not complicated. Turn off notifications; avoid screen time before bed; place less importance on how and when we post; develop new hobbies; and get outside.
